An extradition hearing for an Australian citizen facing up to 60 years in prison if he is convicted in the United States has been delayed for another six months.
A court date scheduled in November will instead be used to seek material from government agencies in defence and intelligence as Daniel Edmund Duggan, 55, remains in maximum security prison.
The former US military pilot, who became an Australian citizen in 2012, is accused of breaching US arms trafficking laws by training Chinese pilots while working at a South African flight school in the early 2010s.
He was arrested at a supermarket car park in central-west NSW in October 2022 at the request of US authorities.
Duggan denies the allegation.
Lawyer Trent Glover, acting for the US, told Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on Monday an agreement had been reached for the November hearing to not consider extradition.
Among the documents being sought from the Commonwealth are classified files from the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, which reviews the activities of Australia's intelligence agencies.
Mr Glover called for the agencies to be given advance notice of the applications.
"There may be objections to the issue of the summons right from the start," he said.
Mr Glover also reiterated the US was ready to proceed with the case.
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus approved the US request to extradite Duggan in December, but a local court magistrate is yet to determine whether he is eligible for transfer.
The court is now scheduled to consider Duggan's extradition eligibility in May 2024.
His wife Saffrine Duggan told AAP last week the allegations were clearly political and unproven, as well as being over a decade old.
She hoped Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would raise the case with US President Joe Biden during a state visit this week.
"I ask the prime minister to deliver a message ... that he will not support the extradition of my husband," Ms Duggan said.
